Cambridge-based Akamai Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: AKAM) announced on Tuesday that it will be laying off 290 employees, or about 3% of its global workforce. The layoffs are part of a restructuring effort that the company says is necessary to “concentrate our investments and resources in our highest growth areas of security and cloud computing, and to sustain our profitability targets during this challenging macroeconomic environment.”
Akamai CEO Tom Leighton said in a statement that the company is “making this difficult decision to ensure that we are best positioned for long-term growth and success.” He added that the layoffs will allow Akamai to “focus on our most strategic areas and continue to deliver innovative solutions to our customers.”
The layoffs come at a time when Akamai is facing increasing competition from rivals such as Cloudflare and Fastly. The company’s security business has been growing rapidly in recent years, but its delivery business has been facing headwinds. In the first quarter of 2023, Akamai’s security revenue grew by 6% year-over-year, while its delivery revenue declined by 1%.
Akamai is not the only technology company that has announced layoffs in recent months. In January, Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) announced that it would be laying off 3,200 employees, or about 3% of its workforce. In February, Twitter Inc. (NYSE: TWTR) announced that it would be laying off 37% of its talent acquisition team.
The layoffs in the technology sector are a sign of the challenges that the industry is facing as it grapples with rising inflation, supply chain disruptions, and the ongoing war in Ukraine.
